Principal's Report

I have the pleasure of relieving as principal while Mr. Walker is on leave until the end of the term.

It’s been a busy start to the year for our school and we have plenty more ahead for the rest of 2021. This term our staff have been working on our school’s Strategic Improvement Plan 2021-2024. It is a requirement that all NSW government schools develop and publish a Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP).

A Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) is a working document that details the steps our school will take to improve learning outcomes, and the achievement and growth of all students. To ensure continuous improvement, the Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) reflects where our school is at and how it will further improve learning, teaching and leading. Parent partnerships is a key focus for our plan. The SIP will be finalised over the coming weeks and will be published on the school website at the beginning of Term 2.

On Monday we celebrated Harmony Day and National Day of Action Against Bullying. The theme this year is ‘Everyone Belongs’. Harmony Day celebrates Australia’s cultural diversity. It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. During class, students had the opportunity to engage in a variety of activities which promote understanding, awareness and acknowledgement of our diverse cultural community.

The international colour of harmony is orange, and as a sign of unity and belonging we were all wearing orange. At Girraween Public School we promote that everybody belongs and that multiculturalism and cultural understanding is something that is part of everyday life in our school and community. We have 43 identified language backgrounds from 97% of the families within our community. We have many children who can communicate in more than two languages. Harmony Day provides a focus for us as a school to ensure we are delivering these important messages to our students.

Also this week we had The School Photographer at school to take our annual school photos. The wet weather on Tuesday didn’t stop our students looking their best, dressed in full uniform, hair braided, gelled, sprayed and/or tied!

Next week we have our Girraween Show Day. Students and teachers are busy organising a huge range of fun activities including face painting, jumping castle, games and competitions. We may even have a visit from local Police and Fire services. In previous years, Show Day was a whole community event and one of our school’s biggest fundraisers. This year, Show Day will be for student participation only and there is no cost to participate in all of the activities. The aim is for our students have a great day, and wear mufti clothes for a gold coin donation. The money raised will go to Stewart House. Each year 1,700 public school children in need come to Stewart House from many parts of NSW and the ACT. During their stay, children are provided with optometric, dental and medical treatment as well as emotional support. Donations allows them to continue to do their important work supporting some of our most vulnerable children.

Next term, we continue to adhere to general COVID-19 requirements to keep our students, staff and parents safe. Visitors including parents/carers are welcome in our school yet must maintain a physical distance from other adults (including staff) when on the school site and at school pick-up and drop-off times. To manage this, we will continue our staggered dismissal times for our students. Kindergarten to Year 2 and Support Unit students will finish school at 2.45pm. Years 3 to 6 will finish school at 3.00pm. Students can be picked up at the allocated areas. We ask parents not to wait for students outside classrooms or cross the school playground. Thank you for your ongoing cooperation implementing these procedures.

We hope you have an enjoyable and safe school holiday break and get ready for another amazing Term 2.

Miss. Cecilia Parada